Iran: Nuclear deal not to be renegotiated (UPDATE)

No new talks on nuclear deal which came into force last year will be held, Iran’s Deputy ‎ Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said.

He made the remarks during a press conference in Tehran on the eve of the first anniversary of the implementation day of the nuclear deal between Iran and the six world powers, Iran’s Press TV reported Jan. 15.

The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action ‎‎(JCPOA aka nuclear deal) will not be renegotiated and it cannot be reversed, Araqchi said.

Except some technical issues, Iran doesn’t have any negotiations with the US regarding the nuclear deal and its future, he added.

The top Iranian diplomat added that the new US administration can not abandon the JCPOA, however Tehran is ready‎ to reverse quickly if they undo.

“Iran is ready for any situation,” Araqchi said. “If the US president-elect Donald Trump tears up the deal, we will burn it.”

Outlining the achievements of the JCPOA, Araqchi said that the nuclear deal turned Iran from being “a menace to peace” into a country with a decisive role in the world arena.

The Iranian diplomat further said that the Islamic Republic had to continuously deal with the US disloyalties, sabotage and the policy of calculated delay during the past year after implementation of the nuclear deal.

He also said that Iran views the extension of Iran Sanctions Act (ISA) by the US as a new sanction and violation of the JCPOA.

It should be noted that representatives of Iran and the six world powers (the US, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany) gathered on Jan. 10 in Vienna to address Iran’s complaint over Washington’s extending the sanctions against Iran for another 10 years.

Following the meeting the Joint Commission underscored the sanctions lifting commitments contained in the JCPOA, in particular as they relate to the Iran Sanctions Act, and recognized the US assurance that extension of the Iran Sanctions Act does not affect in any way the sanctions lifting Iran receives under the deal or the ability of companies to do business in Iran consistent with the JCPOA.